Autoblog

click above for more images of the 2009 Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG

We brought you a single pic of the 2009 Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG on Christmas Day, but Merc has released everything it's got on the über roadster and it looks like what we reported then was correct. The car doesn't receive nearly as thorough a refreshening as its slower siblings, but does get smoked headlamps and a different chin treatment, opting for the single blacked-out lower air intake rather than the F1-inspired split front apron on lesser SLK models. Out back the faux diffuser and dual quadrezoidal (we just made up that word) tailpipes are gone, replaced by a set of dual oval pipes flanking what looks like a skid plate of some sort.

Performance-wise the SLK 55 AMG carries over largely unchanged, which means you'll still find AMG's 5.5L V8 underhood producing 360 hp and 376 ft-lbs. of torque. The AMG Speedshift 7G-TRONIC transmission returns, as well. New this year is the SLK's direct steering system with variable servo assistance, which reduces the amount of turns needed to go from lock to lock and makes turning an easier effort on the driver. Also new are a set of 18-inch AMG twin-spoke wheels, on top of which the car can accelerate to 62 mph in 4.9 seconds. Remember when that was supercar territory ten years ago? Now it can be had in a cut little roadster from Mercedes-Benz.

[Source: Mercedes-Benz]